Despite finishing on the wrong end of the scoreboard, Kiwis coach Michael Maguire is taking plenty of positives out of the 36-18 defeat to England in Denver.
The young New Zealand side started the match strongly and led 12-0 after 30 minutes, but England scored 32 unanswered points to cruise to victory in front of 19,320 fans.
The Kiwis finished with a 66 percent completion rate and missed 56 tackles, while conceding 10 penalties to England's three.
The Wayne Bennett-coached England fielded an almost identical squad which played in last year's World Cup final against Australia, while New Zealand's team featured seven uncapped players.
Speaking to media after the match, Maguire was impressed with his rookie players who showed plenty of promise out on the footy field.
"I was very impressed with some of the younger guys," Maguire said after the match.
"They showed we have incredible depth. We have seven players on debut, and they all put their hands up.
"They have given me lots of confidence around the depths of where we are going with the New Zealand team.
"They have given me plenty to think about moving forward."
The game was brought to the US to promote the sport in the country, which is co-hosting the 2025 World Cup along with Canada.
There was plenty of controversy in the lead-up as the match was played at altitude and in the middle of the club season.
On top of that, it was 30degC in Denver, but drinks breaks midway through each half was brought in to help that.
Maguire said he loved playing in the US and would love to come back in the coming years
"One thing the Americans do is they get behind their sport, and if we can get rugby league into the American market, I think it is going to be huge.
"They like contact, they like the defensive side of the game, so hopefully we can bring ourselves further into the market."
Newshub.
